Quirky, experimental pop with a nice lo-fi layer on top. And it’s completely free.
God damn Brooklyn, you guys are good people.
Check out Slam Donahue’s new mixtape, Big House Nice Dreams, below. I don’t know how these guys haven’t caught on yet.
Italy’s Drink To Me really put some work into their latest album, S. Their tribalism influences especially shine through in fourth track, “Future Days,” with a heavy yet playful electronic build up. The lyrics are charming, especially at the end when the group sings, “we’re doing the best we can/ we’re wide awake and we’re working on the future days/ we are the people that have no hopes/ there’s no nostalgia nor anticipation at all/ we hate, we smile and we’re beautiful/ no revolution was ever made with love .”
The video for the song is more than stimulating with a heavy focus on clean colors and symmetry. There’s a good section in the middle of the track that just feels like a weird acid trip but beyond that, I really love the final minute where the small colored blocks come into play.
And if you’re really into vinyls then you will enjoy their gorgeous deluxe edition that sports a royal blue disc. Check out the rest of their album on their bandcamp page.
I’ve seen a lot of artists opt for the animated music video lately, and it’s not a terrible thing. As much as I love seeing a band perform live, there’s something interesting in the process of producing a video that doesn’t actually star the artist themselves.
I really love the shadowed drawings that give off such an eerie vibe in Lowlakes’ newest video, playing out a story behind Thomas Snowdon’s commanding vocals. Off their debut self-titled EP, “Buffalo Girl,” sits nicely in the Australian’s effortless dream-like sound. The combination of it all is deeply reminiscent of Radiohead, which makes me incredibly interested to see what they prepare for their next release.
Alec Koone aka Balam Acab is someone you need in your iTunes library if you can get down with the thick, bass-heavy underworld of electronic music.
Another young prodigy in the scene, last year we saw his debut with Wander/Wonder and the emergence of his incredible skill of blending lush and haunting electronic tones with everyday nature. An artist constantly creating, he’s been keeping our ears happy with remixes from all over the spectrum.
Oh, and some music to actually grab for keeps. Be sure to right-click and enjoy.
That voice, man, that voice.
Meet Lowlakes, an indie group based out of Melbourne, Australia who straddle the fine line of ambient music with telling vocal play that create intense, whirling melodies. With an incredibly rich sound, the band lightly incorporates various instruments and effects in their incredibly solid self-titled EP which dropped last month.
I love the track, “Song For Motion,” which seems to really capture the evocative nature of Tom Snowdon’s voice. Watch the video for it below and grab the rest of the EP here.
Experimental group, Is and of The creates some powerfully subtle electronica.With the help of a few friends, Drew Bandos sets to create deeply reflective yet highly addicting music.
Full of warping electronic tones and light percussion that lets the sometimes almost indiscernible vocals take the reigns, Is and of The have the ability to take hold of your attention the second you press play.
With a fresh new EP under his belt, Bandos has tightened up his skill set of creating ambient sounds that are backed with a steady cadence to keep everything flowing smoothly. Check out “The Past Inside the Present,” off of Handpainted Glow, and be sure to dig into soundcloud for some extra listening.
How fucking phenomenal are Niki & The Dove videos?
Oh, and grab some free tracks here while you’re waiting around for May 14th when the duo drops their self-titled debut album.
I’ve spoken fondly before about NYC’s The American Dollar. A duo who seem to really have a knack for creating expansive soundscapes fueled by light electronica and polished progressive-rock influences.
The group recently debuted their video for the track, “As We Float,” off their latest album, Awake In The City. Watch as their friend Tor Even Mathisen takes it to another level with his gorgeous time-lapse of an arctic landscape. From brilliant sunlit mountain ranges to a luminous aurora borealis filled night sky, you will be in awe of the natural beauty showcased in this music video below.
Already a bestseller on Bandcamp from this past weekend, Awake In The City is now available for purchase.
It’s going to be just a fine day. I’ve got a new instrumental track from the lovely Mecca:83 to report.
If you haven’t checked out any of his past work then this fresh track will school you in all the right ways. “Chapter Two (For Lucie)” comes stocked with fundamentally sound hip-hop beats and careful layers of samples and effects. There’s also a fabulous strings sample to neatly wrap everything up at the conclusion.
Chapter Two (For Lucie) – Mecca:83
Right-click and enjoy.
I can’t get enough of the song, “Brains,” which is probably my favorite Lower Den’s track so far off their upcoming album, Nootropics, set to drop May 1st.
It begins with incessant drums until Jana Hunter’s haunting vocals start to fill in and lay out the story. She’s got an incredible knack of building anxiety with her voice, control of soft and loud along the mounting electronic noise. Droning guitars that lap like waves in the background heed to the group’s intriguing experimental sound.
And I absolutely love the last energetic minute.
Right-click and enjoy. If you need more lo-fi in your life check out the album Taking Trips by Each Other, which is from our favorite cassette label Prison Art.
